Energize Me with a simple touch
by Kirii
Summary: Nico was starved for touch and, as he and Percy grew closer, he found that the older demigod was everything his appetite for tactile affection had craved. Written for the Percico Fic Challenge on tumblr.


**Author's Note: **Written for the Percico Fic Challenge on tumblr. Mainly, this fic was my excuse to write about touch because, ugh, my favorite sense is touch. Title for the fic was taken from the song "Energize Me" by After Forever. **  
Prompt: **Combination of prompt 2 (Tactile affection; Nico doesn't like to be touched, except when it's Percy tracing patterns on his skin, kissing his scars, breathing hotly on his neck) and prompt 7 (touch starvation).**  
Rating: **PG-13

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**Energize Me [with a simple touch]**

Nico di Angelo was not one for physical contact. He avoided it, for the most part, making only a few exceptions when it came to the small handful of friends he had, and even then, it took a long time for his friends to earn the right to touch him. Hazel had been the first, in record time, to earn those little gestures of affection, those gentle kisses to her cheek or forehead that meant everything to her. Jason was the second, gaining Nico's trust and friendship surprisingly quick, able to give Nico a friendly pat on the back or place a reassuring hand on the son of Hades' shoulder. In comparison, Leo had been one of the last ones who got to so much as give the younger demigod a nudge with his elbow.

No one asked him why, none of them wanting to pry. It was his business who he let touch him. If they were allowed to, they kept their contact with him limited, learning what was okay and what wasn't. Hazel hugged her brother, gave him soft kisses on his cheek, and held his hand from time to time. Piper could touch her hand to his arm to let him know she wanted his attention. Reyna, after taking the Athena Parthenos to Camp Half-Blood with Nico, was able to hug him and shake his hand, slowly breaking down her own walls with him.

Everyone had their limits with Nico.

Except for Percy.

The son of Poseidon could do whatever he wanted to Nico and the younger demigod never refused him. It started off innocently enough; Percy grabbing Nico's hand one day to keep him from walking away. It had been a month after Percy and Annabeth had mutually decided to break up and Nico had finally gathered the courage to face the older demigod and just _tell Percy the truth._ Nico admitted to having harbored a crush on him and, feeling like an idiot, had turned to leave before Percy could say anything back.

Then Percy's hand was gripping his in a silent plea not to leave and Nico obeyed without hesitation.

They hadn't gotten together right after that; things just didn't work like that. Percy was still getting over his break up with Annabeth. While it had been a mutual decision, Annabeth had meant so much to Percy that he couldn't just get over the end of their relationship just like that. Nico understood that and let the older demigod have time to recover and move on.

Over weeks, Percy's touches became subtly more intimate. His fingers brushed against Nico's as he passed by the Hades table at breakfast. His hand rested against the younger teen's back as they sat together on the dock, just hanging out. Percy would gently comb his fingers through Nico's hair, even as he commented that Nico should get Piper to cut his hair. Tanned fingers, calloused from years of wielding a sword, tangled with pale, thin ones as Percy asked, a month after the other boy's confession, if Nico would go to a movie with him.

Each touch was welcomed, never shunned. Nico had wanted them too long to reject them, even though he had shied away from touches for so long. To him, to touch was to love, and Nico had broken one too many people he touched. He spent years avoiding contact, afraid to lose someone the same way he'd lost too many people already. His mother, his sister, both beloved, lost to him forever. He'd refused to lose Percy, too, refused to let his touch taint the son of Poseidon, mark him for death.

Hazel was the one who'd taught him that his touch was nothing to be scared of, that Nico's hands didn't bring death. It was the opposite, she insisted. After all, he'd brought her life; Nico's hand had led her out of the Underworld. Nico's hand had led them to Epirus, where Percy and Annabeth were brought back through the Doors of Death.

Nico had been grateful for her words, though he hadn't believed her at first. But as Hazel, Jason, and the others continued to live, none of them lost to the son of Hades, despite his touch upon them, he came to realize that his sister had been right. He began to let go of his fear of touching, slowly, bit by bit, allowing his friends more contact with him.

And when Percy began to touch, Nico let go of that last, lingering fear. He began touching back with time. His actions were slowly built up, from taking hold of the hem of Percy's shirt, to taking the older demigod's hand. After a month, he let Percy take his hand again, their fingers lacing together as Nico agreed to go to a movie with the son of Poseidon.

Nico was starved for touch and, as he and Percy grew closer, he found that the older demigod was everything his appetite for tactile affection had craved. Percy's fingers traced his skin, drawing the lines of imaginary constellations in the freckles of Nico's skin. Nico's hands learned every curve of Percy's body, tracing every dip and rise of his muscles. Percy's lips discovered scars, brushing against them and sending shivers through the younger teen's body. Nico's lips followed the line of Percy's veins from his wrist, up his arm in a slow trail.

It didn't have to be anything more than a simple touch to awaken Nico's senses. Percy's fingers could be tracing the contours of his palms, nails just grazing against the grain of Nico's skin, and the son of Hades would slip into a sense of comfort that Percy alone could give him. No one's touches meant more to him.

Hazel could hug him, hold his hand, and press her gentle, reassuring kisses to his cheek. Jason could clap a hand on his shoulder from time to time, affirm the friendship the two of them had slowly built since the incident with Cupid. Leo still only barely got away with a light, friendly punch to his arm, his actions always more brash and bold than most. Even Annabeth could place her hand on Nico's head for the occasional hair ruffle as she sighed and told him to take care of the Seaweed Brain.

Only Percy could satisfy Nico's need for touch, energize the young demigod, and bring him forth from the cold shadows he'd lived in for so long.


End file.
